GALT, CA (MPG) - Details of a coming fiber optic system installation project designed to serve the entire city raised some concerns from City Council members at their Nov. 4 meeting.

UnWired Broadband, a Fresno-based company serving Central and Northern California since 2003, is looking to install a fiber-optic system for high-speed internet capable of serving every residence and business in Galt.

According to its website, the company, which began in Clovis with a single tower, now has 227 towers providing coverage to residences and businesses in 20 California counties, stretching more than 20,000 square miles and reaching more than 30,000 customers.

“We provide service from the Grapevine up to Yuba and Sutter County,” unWired regulatory advisor Jeremy Stern told council.

The system could eventually provide fiber optic connections to all 7,380 residences, 974 multifamily units and 263 businesses in the city, should they wish to subscribe to the service. UnWired is a “hybrid broadband provider” in that it features traditional fixed wireless systems and what is referred to as “FTTH” service.

FTTH stands for “fiber to the home,” where subscribers’ homes or businesses are directly wired with fiber optic cable connected to the main fiber optic system.

Other fiber systems include FTTN, “fiber to the node” where cable is run to a node or junction box; FTTC, “fiber to the curb” and FTTB, “fiber to the building.” These systems rely on traditional copper or aluminum wiring to bring the service from the curb, node or structure connection box inside the building, whereas FTTH runs fiber all the way to the interior modem.

Because fiber optic systems use light pulses to carry information instead of electricity, they are faster than traditionally wired systems.

“We do believe it’s a good thing that this is coming to the city to provide faster and better internet accessibility to the citizens of Galt,” Interim Galt City Manager Chris Elias told the council.

Stern said unWired has completed similar fiber systems in Gustine and Coalinga and is wrapping up installations in Parlier and Wasco. A “high-level design” for Galt’s system is completed, with next steps involving company staff getting out into the city to fine tune the design.

“We hope to be constructing right after the first of the year,” Stern said.

Stern said unWired won’t install the system citywide all at once. Instead, it will divide Galt into 16 “distribution areas” (DA) consisting of 600 homes each. Installation begins in one distribution area, performed in seven individual phases, and as it is completed, crews move on to the next distribution area, eventually working on two, three or even four distribution areas at once.

“And that’s why we think we can build this out in about 13 months,” Stern said. “UnWired Broadband is very experienced with this approach.”

Galt’s system will be connected to a central office that Stern said would be in the area. The company would update residents as installation progressed through their neighborhood.

Both Stern and Elias acknowledged there would be some disruptions to neighborhoods from installation, with crews working in city rights-of-way and easements.

Mayor Shawn Farmer asked if unWired would utilize existing underground conduits or install their own. Stern said that it would be a mixture of both. If conduit is not present or unavailable for other reasons, crews would install it utilizing a trenchless system called “direct boring.” Any disruptions or damage to rights of way, easements or streets would be repaired by unWired to the original condition, Stern added.

While it’s a good service, Farmer said, not everyone in Galt would likely end up subscribing to unWired’s FTTH system but would be impacted by the installation. Elias said the city itself would benefit through leasing space for the company’s equipment, get reimbursed for staff time and would receive FTTH at no cost.

“I’m aware of that,” Farmer said. “No disrespect; I just think the general public is not going to be like, ‘Oh, we’re fine to be inconvenienced because the city is going to get a great deal on internet.’”

Farmer added that council members and city staff are already receiving complaints from residents impacted by construction projects along Cornel and Bernal roads as well as past projects. Elias agreed, saying there are always unknowns and potential problems on projects, and the city had questions about how those would be dealt with by unWired and the city.

Council members also voiced concerns about installation work blocking residents’ driveways, something Stern said they would not do, as well as the potential for additional infrastructure damage in the future. Residences and businesses have fiber optic connections made to the larger system only when they subscribe, something that would require additional trenching work.

Stern agreed to a council request to return to a future meeting with more details as well as additional unWired personnel who could address more specific questions.